Artist's Bio
Artist Biography
I consider myself lucky to have spent my childhood happily living in the small-town environment of Kingston, Massachusetts. As an adult, I have lived in Derry, N.H. After raising my family of two sons, I spent many years teaching children with multiple and severe disabilities in the P.E.A.C.H. Program in the Derry School District. Later I developed the A.P.P.L.E. Program at the Rochester Middle School. After doing volunteer work at Crotched Mountain Rehab Center in Greenfield, NH as a massage therapy intern, I currently work as a massage therapist at the Easter Seals residential home in Manchester, NH., providing therapy for teenagers with autism.
In 1992, while teaching in Derry, I participated in the 7th grade art curriculum along with my students. Up until that point in my life, I had not the slightest interest in artwork. It was then that I was surprised to discover my interest and abilities in drawing. Later I went on to take art courses at the N.H. Institute of Arts & Sciences, E. W. Poore, and the College for Lifelong Learning. I worked for a number of years under the mentorship of Pamela Kennedy, a well-established Pen& Ink artist now residing and working on the West Coast.
My work includes a variety of media: pen & ink, watercolor, graphite, colored pencil, and my newly discovered “Stonedust Color". My subject matter is also varied: beach rocks, trees, and water are a favorite of mine. Other subjects include landscapes and portraits. My work has received numerous awards from the Greater Derry Arts Council, Manchester Art in the Park Fine Arts Festival, NH Division of Parks and Recreation, Londonderry Art on the Common, Salem Artists Association, and Monadnock Area Artists Association.
In 2008 I participated in an art exhibit entitled “Four Seasons; Four Views”, featuring multi-media works of fine art by three other local artists. Originally developed for the Massabesic Audubon Society, Auburn, NH, the artwork celebrates nature as it manifests itself in all four seasons. An updated version, “Four Seasons; Four Views Revisited”, returned to Auburn, NH in January and February of 2014 at the request of the Massabesic Audubon Society.
In 2013 I was honored to have been chosen featured artist at the 33 Annual Beaver Brook Fall Festival Art Exhibit in Hollis, NH. At that exhibit I demonstrated my recently discovered “Stonedust Color” technique in which I extract color from stones to create my own watercolor paint. The resulting watercolor paints are then used to create paintings of multi-colored stones and rocks. The children at the festival were invited to work with me using the “Stonedust” technique to create a painting entitled “Somewhere a Dragon Flys”, which was auctioned at the 2014 festival to benefit the children’s education program at Beaver Brook. (See the "What's New?" section of the menu for more info on Stonedust Color.)
Currently I am one of three Derry artists whose work is featured in a fine art touring exhibit, “The Road Not Taken”, inspired by the poetry of Robert Frost. Since September, 2011 this exhibit has been touring libraries, nature centers, and community venues across New Hampshire and features approximately 28 works that reflect a variety of personal interpretations of the works of one of America’s most inspiring poets, Robert Frost.
You can reach me at: [email protected]
